PRT-based multisensory smart education prototype for intervention in children with autism spectrum disorder

Summary This study, based on PRT theory and an interdisciplinary medicine-education-art-intelligent technology framework, explored the feasibility and acceptability of the multisensory smart education prototype (MSEP) for supporting intervention and education in children with ASD. MSEP integrates intelligent interaction, automated snack reinforcement, multisensory, and interest-driven elements, delivering cross-domain training to boost engagement. Observations suggest that stimuli and automatic rewards were associated with enhanced engagement, with participants' average attention span elevated by 83.3% to 27.5 min. An exploratory controlled trial was performed on 6 children with ASD during the holiday, with outcomes assessed using the C-PEP. Among the 3 participants in the intervention arm, pre- and post-intervention assessments demonstrated trends in improvement in developmental domains as well as trends toward a reduction in maladaptive behaviors. No consistent improvement trends were observed in the 3 control participants. This study adds to ASD intervention research by presenting a prototype with preliminary feasibility and acceptability.